USDA has released an assessment report on the carbon markets looking at the current market activity and barriers and opportunities to improve access for farmers and forest landowners.
The report, titled “A General Assessment of the Role of Agriculture and Forestry in the U.S. Carbon Markets,” identifies various barriers, such as high costs in carbon markets, including the costs of greenhouse gas quantification, verification and reporting, and provides insight into solutions to accessibility.
The report states despite a high awareness of carbon markets from producers, there is only a 3% participation rate due to the barriers. It further shows the agency has new or existing programs to reduce the barriers agricultural and forestry producers face in accessing voluntary environmental credit markets. This includes the $300 million investment in climate-smart agriculture and forestry through President Joe Biden’s Investing in America agenda.
USDA said the next step is for the agency to decide whether to establish the Greenhouse Gas Technical Assistance Provider and Third-Party Verifier Program. This would facilitate better technical assistance to producers interested in participating in carbon markets and a process to register market verifiers.
